I was checking our two cars today, as we had new tyres on the Xantia last Friday. I never trust garages or tyre fitters to get the pressures correct. The result was that I found the two new tyres were at 26 psi, when the correct pressure should be 33 psi.
Whilst I had the tyre inflator out, I offered to check the tyres on our neighbours new C4, knowing that she never does. The front tyres were OK, at 2.5 bars (should be 2.4), but the rear tyres were 3.1 bars, when the correct pressure should be between 2.1 and 2.7 bars, depending upon the load.
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How do you know that your pressure guage is more accurate than garages, and why dont you trust tyre fitters to get the pressure right?
WTM
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It is a relatively new, good quality electric pump (Halfords)and, having used one of their foot pumps for as long as I can remember, I know the readings on the gauge can be trusted by the even wear I have had on several sets of tyres, over many years. It would be a bit unusual for the gauge on a new electric pump to be out by 7 psi. The tyres looked underinflated anyway. I have hardly ever had new tyres set at the correct pressure by a tyre fitter.
Let's look at it this way, either the front tyres on my neighbours C4 were at the correct pressure, and the back ones way out, or it was the other way round, whether my gauge is out or not.
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why dont you trust tyre fitters to get the pressure right?
Are you saying that you do? I've never had the correct pressures put in any of my tyres by tyre fitters. Where I go, generally one guy will do one side of the car, while a colleague does the other, resulting in unequal pressures on each side of the car.
Always pays to check them a few days after fitting anyway, as well as checking that the roadwheel nuts/bolts are at the correct torque. Tyre fitters have a nasty habbit of overtightening them with the windy gun.
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I feel priveliged at my local tyre place, they check the handbook for the correct pressures and then use a torque wrench to do the nuts.
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Are you saying that you do?
Yes, I am saying that. Mind you, I go to a local branch of an exhaust/tyre place, and No.1 son is a supervisor their. only he does our cars, even though I've never asked him specially to.
I've never had the correctpressures put in any of my tyres by tyre fitters. Where I go, generally one guy will do one side of the car, while a colleague does the other, resulting in unequal pressures on each side of the car.
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well if you think you are getting shoddy service then why dont you complain? from the context of what you say, you have been to this place on more than one occasion.
Always pays to check them a few days after fitting anyway, as well as checking that the roadwheel nuts/bolts are at the correct torque.
this should be done as a matter of course. preferably after no more than 50 miles.
Tyre fitters have a nasty habbit of overtightening themwith the windy gun.
true, but again, why dont you insist on the job being done properly?
WTM
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true, but again, why dont you insist on the job being done properly?
Because they're generally £10 to £20 cheaper than other tyre fitters in the area. I can live with that for the sake of checking the tyre pressures myself afterwards.
Having said that, other places I've used still put the wrong pressures in. They all seem to put a default 30 psi in, regardless of the car.
One thing I do insist on though is that they don't go anywhere near my locking wheel bolts with a windy gun and that they only use a wheel brace, both for undoing, and tightening back up. My previous cars had the type where pins in the key located into holes in the bolt head. The vibration of the windy gun rattled all the pins out and made the key useless.
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>How do you know that your pressure guage is more accurate than garage's?<.
In absolute terms I suppose I don't (it's a pen-type). But it agrees within 1 psi with two others, and it must be more reliable to check with the same occasionally-used gauge than to use ones which may be wearing out from heavy use.
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